University of Iowa officials say they are nearly sold out of luxury boxes that will be part of a renovated Kinnick Stadium that opens in 2006. More than 40 boxes have already been spoken for and associate athletic director Jane Meyer says more may be added by eliminating some of the indoor club seating. She says they can’t go beyond 50 and says they’ll likely end up in the mid 40’s.The 90-million dollar renovation of Kinnick will include new south end zone seating, wider seats, more restrooms and concessions as well as a new press box. Iowa athletic director Bob Bowlsby says they though long and hard before deciding to reinvest in Kinnick before building new. He says the cost to build a new stadium was between 350 and 400 million, and he says he doesn’t know where they would go to get that money. Bowlsby says even with the updates, the location of the stadium means gamedays will remain congested. He says six days a year it will be pretty crowded and there’s not much they can do about that as they can’t create new roads for use just six days a year. Bowlsby says when completed the updates will make a trip to Kinnick Stadium much more enjoyable for the fans. He says they’re tripling the number of restrooms and doubling the number of concession stands.Bowlsby says the project will modernize the stadium while preserving its original design. He says if it comes in on time and on budget, he says he’d be comfortable saying it will be the nicest stadium of its kind in the country. The project will be completed in time for the 2006 season.
